A lucky man escaped a run-in with a shark off the New South Wales north coast with only a few teeth marks on his body, local authorities announced.

The man, whose name was not revealed, was surfing Monday morning on a beach between Suffolk Park and Broken Head when a big shark attacked him. He was offered first aid at the scene, before being rushed to Byron Bay hospital by a friend at around 7.30 a.m.

A spokesperson for Surf Life Saving said that the man, who is believed to be in his late 30s, had three punctures in his thigh from the shark bite.

Geoffrey Knapp, a friend of the man, said, “They’re deep tooth wounds. But in the great scheme of things it’s marginal but his surfboard took the brunt of the bite … He got the impression the shark was trying to knock him off his surfboard and try and roll him over.”

The shark attack prompted authorities to temporarily close the beach. Other beaches in the Byron Bay area were also closed for 24 hours as a precautionary measure.

Meanwhile, Primary Industries Minister Niall Blair has announced that a bill designed to legalize a six-month trial of traditional shark nets on the North Coast will be introduced in the NSW Parliament in the last session of this year.

The NSW Department of Primary Industries acknowledged that mesh nets might lead to entanglements of marine creatures, but argued that it will give top priority to protecting human life.